Hand splint for implant surgery

ABSTRACT

The specification discloses a splint for postoperative use following placement of implants in hand joints and which comprises a lower support member having padding material upon which one&#39;&#39;s hand is to be rested; an upper member having padding material to be placed against the back of one&#39;&#39;s hand; straps for coupling the two members together to hold them fixed relative to the hand; a post extending from the lower support member to be located between the thumb and the index finger; straps or loops to be fitted around the fingers; and resilient bands to be connected to the loops and to the post for pulling the fingers toward the post.

Guerrant HAND SPLINT FOR IMPLANT SURGERY [76] Inventor: Edmonds L. Guerrant, 2822 Lancaster, Fort Worth, Tex. 76107 22 Filed: Oct. 18, 1972 21 Appl. No.: 298,561

[52] US. Cl. 128/77, 128/87 A [51] Int. Cl. A6lf 5/10 [58] Field of Search 128/77, 87, 89, 80, 95

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,298,529 3/1919 Maddox 128/87 2,438,144 3/1948 Bunyar, Jr 128/77 UX 3,703,894 11/1972 Galloway et a1. 128/77 3,714,940 2/1973 Palmer 128/77 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 502,687 5/1920 France 128/77 OTHER PUBLICATIONS Braces Today" Newsletter of the Pope Foundation, page 2, Sept. 1954.

[ 1 June 11, 1974 Orthopaedic Appliances Atlas, pages 325, 326, 1952.

Primary Examiner,Ri'chard A. Gaudet Assistant Examiner.l. Yasko Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Wofford, Felsman, Fails & Zobal .[5 7] ABSTRACT The specification discloses a splint for postoperative use following placement of implants in hand joints and which comprises a lower support member having padding material upon which ones hand is to be rested; an upper member having padding material to be placed against the back of ones hand; straps for coupling the two members together to hold them fixed relative to the hand; a post extending from the lower support member to be located between the thumb and the index finger; straps or loops to be fitted around the fingers; and resilient bands to be connected to the loops and tothe post for pulling the fingers toward the post.

9 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures HAND SPLINT FOR IMPLANT SURGERY BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a post-operative hand splint for maintaining the fingers straight during the healing process afterimplant surgery.

Recently an implant operation has been perfected to enable patients wit severely restricted arthritic hands to regain the use of their hands and fingers. In this operation, the knuckles are removed and replaced with plastic implants which are attached to the bones of the hand. v

The fingers of arthritic hands have a tendency to pull sideways toward the little finger and will heal in this position after the operation unless they are maintained straight during the healing process. A splint has been developed to maintain the fingers straight during the healing process however this splint has not proved to be satisfactory. It comprises a base to be strapped to the top of the hand and has an upward extending member with a cross member to be located above the fingers. Straps or loops are fitted around the fingers and are attached to the cross member by way of rubber bands at positions to pull the fingers toward the thumb to maintain the fingersstraight. From experience, however, it has been found that this splint does not accomplish its intended purpose since the force'of the rubber bands coupled to the cross member and to the fingers pulls or rotates the base around the hand thereby relieving the tension on the fingers. This allows'the fingers to return to their accustomed sideways extending positions caused by the arthritic condition thereby allowing the fingers to set and heal in. this undesired positionu SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a post-operative hand splint which is economic, comfortfingers toward the post.

- In one aspect, the post has a lower transverse portion which is pivotally coupled to the support means at one end thereof to allow the post to be located on either side of the support member. The coupling means comprises resilient means connected to straps or loops which are fitted around the fingers. The post has an' upper transverse member coupled to its free end to which the resilient means are connected.

In a further aspect, the support means comprises a plate-like member having padding material coupled thereto upon which ones hand is to be rested. In addition an upper member is provided and. which has padding material coupled thereto to be located against the back of ones hand. The padding material employed has a high resistance to movement against bandages. The upper member is coupled to the plate-like member after it has been positioned in place to hold the upper member and the support means fixed relative to the hand.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the post-operative splint forsupporting a hand illustrated in dotted lines;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring now to the drawings, the splint is illustrated at 11 and comprises a lower support member 12 and an upper support member 13. The lowermemberlZ com- -prises a plate-like member 14 having soft padding material 15' coupled thereto upon which the hand is to be rested. The upper member 13 is formed by a plate 16 to which soft padding material 17 is attached. This member is placed to rest upon the back of the hand and the upper and lower members are coupled together by wayof straps illustrated at 18. Although not shown, it is to be understood that the hand will be bandaged and the padding material 15 and 17 will be in contact with the bandages. The padding material 15 and 17 employed have a rubbing surface which providesarela tively highresistance to sliding movement over conventional bandages formedfof cotton or synthetic material. Thus the padding material 15 and 17 .re'sist' movement of the upper and lower support members relative to the bandaged hand.

Coupled to the front end of the plate 14 is a post 19 which is to be located between the thumb and the index finger as illustrated in FIG. 1. The post comprises a lower transverse portion 20 which'is pivotallycoupled to the undersideof the member 14 by way of a rivet 21. Thus the post 19 can be pivoted to either side of the support member to allow it to be used either by the left hand or the right hand. In either position, it is held in place by a bolt 23 inserted through an aperture (not shown) formed in the transverse portion 20 and through an aperture 25 formed on each side of the member 14. A nut 27 is threaded to the end of the bolt 23 to securely hold it in place. Extending from the top of the post 19 is a transverse bar 31 forming a-T-shaped post for' holding two rubber bands illustrated at 33 which are inserted through apertures 35 formed through the top of the upper transverse member 31. Tape 36 is employed to hold the rubber bands in place. The opposite ends of each of the rubber bands are adapted to be attached to flexible straps or loops 37 by way of hooks 39 coupled to each of the straps. These straps are fitted around the fingers and the rubber bands pull the fingers toward the post 19. The upper and lower support members with their relatively high friction-providing padding material maintain the lower plate 14 and hence the post 19 fixed with respect to the hand. The post 19 bears against the M-P joint (the side of the knuckle of the index finger) and resists the pull of the rubber bands whereby the lower support member will be prevented from rotating about the hand.

Thus the lower support member will be maintained in place whereby the fingers will be maintained straight thereby allowing the fingers to heal correctly or in their normal position thereby avoiding the undesirable ulnar drift.

' The upper member 13 also provides pressure on the incisions at the knuckles to minimize swelling and to promote healing. The pressure is not extreme nor uncomfortable due to the padding material 17 and due to the fact that the front end of the upper member 13 is bent upward thereby minimizing excess pressure. As illustrated upper plate 16 has a second plate 41 coupled thereto by way of rivets illustrated at 43' for holding the straps 18 to the upper member 13. The plate 41 has two loop-shaped ends 41A and 41B with indentations 45 formed in the lower side of the plate. The straps 18 each have an end attached to the underside of the plate 14 by rivets 47. The mid-portions of the straps are inserted into the loop-shaped portions of the top plate 41 and their free ends wrapped around the hand and secured in piace. The indentations 45 bite into the straps 18 to maintain the top member 13 ina fixed position relative to the straps and to the hand once they have been adjusted in place. The straps 18 have hook and loop fasteners coupled to their opposite ends for readily allowing the opposite ends of the straps to be attached togetherand disconnected when desired. The loop fasteners are attached to the inside surface of ends 18A of the'straps 18. The loop fasteners are illustrated at 49 in FIGS. 1 and 2. The hook fasteners are attached to the outside surfaces of the straps 18 at their opposite ends 188. These hook and loop fasteners are well known in the art and are identified by the trademark VELCRO in one embodiment. The use of the hook and loop fasteners'have advantages in that they allow quick and easy adjustment of the splint to hands of different sizes. As shown in FIG. 2, the loop fasteners are crossstitched to allow excess strap length to be cut off.

Also'provided is a third strap 51 which has one end coupled to the bottom of the base plate 14 by way of a rivet 53 and which is adapted to be wrapped around the hand and coupled to the other end of the strap 51 by way of hook and loop fastenerscoupled to opposite ends of the strap. I a FIG. 8 illustrates a modified upper member '13 wherein the upper plate 41 is eliminated and slots 55 formed in the plate 41 through which the straps 18 are inserted for maintaining the upper member 13 fixed relative to the straps by friction between the strap and the padding material 17. I 1

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, the sling is illustrated at 71 and comprises a conventional sling having two loopshaped ends 71A and 71B, the loop 71A being adapted to be looped around the arm or around the rear end of the support member 12. Coupled to the loop 718 is a metal loop 73 to which a hook 75 is attached. I-Iook 75 has two hook-shaped ends 75A and 758 which are adapted to hook around the transverse member 31 on each side of the post 17 to attach the sling to the splint. This arrangement has advantages in that it may be readily detached if desired.

If desired, the hook 75 may be removed and the loop 718 may be looped around the front end of the support member 12 for supporting the splint.

In one embodiment the plates l4, l6, and 41 and the post 19 may be formed of aluminum. As illustrated the plate 14 is slightly V-shaped in cross-section transverse to its length to form a cradle-like support for the hand. The pads 15 and 17 may be of polyethylene foam which has a sponge-like rubbing surface and provides a high coefficient of friction between the padding material and conventional bandages. Preferably they are cemented to plates 14 and 16. Instead of securing the straps l8 and 51 to the bottom plate 14 with rivets. they may be cemented in place. In addition. the hook and loop fasteners may be attached to the ends of the straps 18 and 51 with cement rather than with stitching.-

The support member 12 has a length of about 9 /2 inches whereby it may extend rearward to a point about midway between the wrist and elbow. It may be shortened however to a length such that it does not extend rearward beyond the palm of ones hand to allow the wrist to be free to move. This may be desirable for arthritic patients to allow exercise of the wrist to prevent the wrist from becoming stiff. In this latter embodiment, the support member 12 may have a length of about 4 ,4. inches. The strap 51 will be eliminated in this embodiment. v

I claim: Y

1. A splint for post-operative use following placement of implants in hand joints, comprising:

support means upon which ones hand is to be placed, means for securing said support means to one 5 hand, said support means having a front end which is adapted to engage the palm of ones hand, a rigid post to be located between the thumb and the index finger of-ones hand, saidpost being supported by said support means, and extending upward from one side of the front end of said support means, and coupling means to be coupled to the fingers and to said post for pulling the fingers toward said post. 2. The splint of claim 1 wherein said post is coupled to said support means in a manner whereby it may be located on either side of said support means to allow said splint to be used either for the right or left hand.

3. The splint of claim 1 wherein said post has a transverse lower portion which is pivotally coupled to said support means at an end thereof to altow said post to be located on either side of said support means.

4. The splint of claim 1 wherein:

said post has an upper transverse membercoupled to its freeend,

said coupling means comprises:

loop means to be fitted around the fingers, and resilient means to be connected to said loop means and to said upper'transverse member.

5. The splint of claim 4 wherein said post has a transverse lower portion which is pivotally coupled to said support means at an end thereof to allow said post to be located on either side of said support means.

6. The splint of claim 5 comprising:

a neck or shoulder sling with a hook coupled thereto and adapted to hook to said upper transverse member of said post for supporting to the body the splint and ones hand carried by the splint.

7. The splint of claim 1 wherein:

said support means comprises a plate-like member having padding material coupled thereto upon which ones hand is to be placed,

an upper member having padding material coupled thereto to be located against the back of the hand,

said padding material being characterized by having a high resistance to movement against bandages, and

means for coupling together said support means and said upper member for holding said support means fixed relative to the hand. 9. A splint for post-operative use following place- 6 ment of implants in hand joints, comprising:

first support means comprising a rigid plate-like member having padding material coupled thereto to be placed under ones hand,

said first support means having a front end which is adapted to engage the palm of ones hand,

second support means having padding material coupled thereto to be placed against the back of ones hand,

said padding material being characterized by having a high resistance to movement against bandages,

rigid post means to be located between the thumb and index finger of ones hand,

said post means being supported by said plate-like member and extending upward from one side of the front end of said plate-like member,

coupling means to be coupled to said splint forpulling the fingers toward said post means, and

means for coupling together said first and second support means for holding said first and second support means and said post means fixed relative to the hand.

Patent No. 3 3 8 Dated June 11, 197 i Inventor(s) Edmonds L. Guerrant It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

IN THE CLAIMS :Please correct claim 8 by deleting "rested" and inserting -placed-, in line 13, column 5.

Signed and sealed this 1st day of October 1974.

(SEAL) Attest:

C. MARSHALL DANN McCOY M. GIBSON JR.

Commissioner of Patents Attesting Officer 

1. A splint for post-operative use following placement of implants in hand joints, comprising: support means upon which one''s hand is to be placed, means for securing said support means to one''s hand, said support means having a front end which is adapted to engage the palm of one''s hand, a rigid post to be located between the thumb and the index finger of one''s hand, said post being supported by said support means and extending upward from one side of the front end of said support means, and coupling means to be coupled to the fingers and to said post for pulling the fingers toward said post.
 2. The splint of claim 1 wherein said post is coupled to said support means in a manner whereby it may be located on either side of said support means to allow said splint to be used either for the right or left hand.
 3. The splint of claim 1 wherein said post has a transverse lower portion which is pivotally coupled to said support means at an end thereof to allow said post to be located on either side of said support means.
 4. The splint of claim 1 wherein: said post has an upper transverse member coupled to its free end, said coupling means comprises: loop means to be fitted around the fingers, and resilient means to be connected to said loop means and to said upper transverse member.
 5. The splint of claim 4 wherein said post has a transverse lower portion which is pivotally coupled to said support means at an end thereof to allow said post to be located on either side of said support means.
 6. The splint of claim 5 comprising: a neck or shoulder sling with a hook coupled thereto and adapted to hook to said upper transverse member of said post for supporting to the body the splint and one''s hand carried by the splint.
 7. The splint of claim 1 wherein: said support means comprises a plate-like member having padding material coupled thereto upon which one''s hand is to be placed, an upper member having padding material coupled thereto to be located against the back of the hand, said padding material being characterized by having a high resistance to movement against bandages, and means for coupling together said support means and said upper member for holding said support means and said post fixed relative to the hand.
 8. The splint of claim 5 wherein: said support means comprises a plate-like member having padding material coupled thereto upon which one''s hand is to be rested, an upper member having padding material coupled thereto to be located against the back of the hand, said padding material being characterized by having a high resistance to movement against bandages, and means for coupling together said support means and said upper member for holding said support means fixed relative to the hand.
 9. A splint for post-operative use following placement of implants in hand joints, comprising: first support means comprising a rigid plate-like member having padding material coupled thereto to be placed under one''s hand, said first support means having a front end which is adapted to engage the palm of one''s hand, second support means having padding material coupled thereto to be placed against the back of one''s hand, said padding material being characterized by having a high resistance to movement against bandages, rigid post means to be located between the thumb and index finger of one''s hand, said post means being supported by said plate-like member and extending upward from one side of the front end of said plate-like member, coupling means to be coupled to said splint for pulling the fingers toward said post means, and means for coupling together said first and second support means for holding said first and second support means and said post means fixed relative to the hand. 